UMSOM to recruit new professor to drive development and commercialization of next-generation bioengineering technologies

BALTIMORE, Feb. 26, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) has been awarded $1 million in matching funds from the Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative Fund (MEIF), administered by the Maryland Department of Commerce. The funds--totaling $3 million when combined with matching qualified funding from UMB--will enable the establishment of the Edward and Jennifer St. John Endowed Professorship in Translational Biomedical Engineering and Innovation at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, UMSOM Dean Mark T. Gladwin, MD, announced today.

Last year, the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) and the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) launched CTEM, which was funded by a $10 million joint gift from the St. Johns and the Edward St. John Foundation and with an additional $12.75 million grant from the University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State (MPower). The center brings together clinicians from UMSOM and engineers from the A. James Clark School of Engineering at UMCP to tackle health challenges and drive medical innovations, improving treatments for patients and empowering them to live healthier lives.

"As Maryland continues to emerge as a national leader in biomedical technology, this matching grant will help us recruit a new scientific leader who can bring together teams of clinicians and engineers to accelerate the development of innovative medical technologies--from bench to bedside," said Dean Gladwin, who also serves as Vice President for Medical Affairs at the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB), and is the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean. "At the Edward & Jennifer St. John Center, our teams of 'physicianeers' will have the opportunity to further advance new imaging tools, biomaterials, AI‑driven diagnostics, and medical devices, all aimed at developing better treatments and therapies for our patients."

UMB President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS added: "This endowed professorship represents a crucial next step toward realizing the full promise of CTEM. The complex health challenges we face today cannot be solved by any one discipline of science, engineering, or medicine. Through CTEM, we are building a powerful, truly collaborative environment where biomedical and engineering researchers come together to translate discoveries into meaningful advances for patients."

The grant will support a nationally recognized leader whose work bridges bioengineering and medicine, with a strong track record in translational research and innovation. The position is designed to catalyze cross-campus collaboration, elevate the University of Maryland as a leader in translational biomedical engineering, and serve as a shared resource for investigators seeking to integrate engineering approaches into biomedical and clinical research.

Osamah Saeedi, MD, Co-Director of CTEM and Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at UMSOM added: "We are excited to recruit a new faculty leader that can expand our impact in biomedical innovation and mentor the next generation engineers, clinicians, and physician-scientists dedicated to improving human health. This endowment furthers our commitment to building sustainable programs that benefit patients and investigators."

Two other local colleges and universities in the state joined the Maryland Department of Commerce in endowing a total of $5.8 million to fund new research professorships. The schools receiving matching funds are Bowie State University and Morgan State University.

The endowments were made through the Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative (MEI), a state program created to spur basic and applied research in scientific and technical fields at the colleges and universities. All three schools including UMB raised a total of more than $3.5 million in private funding for the positions and Maryland Commerce approved matching grants of $2.3 million to support the endowments.

The Maryland E-Nnovation Initiative Fund was created by the General Assembly during the 2014 legislative session and has provided more than $100.3 million in funding to leverage more than $111.5 million in private donations. The funding can be used to pay salaries of newly endowed department chairs, staff, and support personnel in designated scientific and technical fields of study; fund related research fellowships for graduate and undergraduate students; and purchase lab equipment and other basic infrastructure and equipment.

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SOURCE University of Maryland School of Medicine